Cuba hosts first U.S. business conference in years, seeks investment

Record ID: 1695116

  • Title: Cuba hosts first U.S. business conference in years, seeks investment
  • Date: 26th October 2022
  • Summary: HAVANA, CUBA (OCTOBER 26, 2022) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF AMERICAN ENTREPRENEURS ARRIVING AT CONFERENCE VARIOUS OF ATTENDEES AT CONFERENCE ATTENDEES LISTENING TO THE U.S. ANTHEM CUBAN AND U.S. FLAGS (SOUNDBITE) (English) FOUNDER OF FOCUS CUBA, PHIL PETERS, SAYING: “Well, in general, we want to look at the ways that Americans can do business here, many of which have been established for a long time. We can sell for the benefit of the private sector, we can sell goods for the benefit of the private agriculture. We’ve been able to export for decades agriculture products, but now there’s also the opportunity to work with the private businesses. There is a new law governing private business, they have a legal status they didn’t have before, they can join with foreign investors, so big question that’s new is: ¿How can foreigners invest in Cuban private business?” CUBAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE PRESIDENT, ANTONIO LUIS CARRICARTE, SPEAKING DURING EVENT ATTENDEES (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) CUBAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE'S PRESIDENT, ANTONIO LUIS CARRICARTE, SAYING: “I think it is a gesture of courage, and it is a historic moment because in the current complexities in the international situation, the fact that business people from the United States are present here illustrates the characteristic of this businessmen: proactive, creative, enterprising. Beyond the obstacles, they see challenges and opportunities that can be turned into businesses and projects beneficial for both countries." VARIOUS OF ATTENDEES TALKING TO EACH OTHER CARRICARTE (LEFT), DEPUTY FOREIGN MINISTER, CARLOS FERNANDEZ DE COSSIO (CENTER), AND DEPUTY DIRECTOR FOR U.S. AFFAIRS AT THE CUBAN FOREIGN MINISTRY, JOHANA TABLADA (RIGTH), TALKING TO EACH OTHER (SOUNDBITE) (English) CUBAN-AMERICAN ENTREPRENEUR, HUGO CANCIO, SAYING: "After many years of a cold shoulder, we are engaging. So, the fact that American companies are here, engaging with their counterparts in Cuba, not only meeting with entities that belong to the state but the booming private sector, which no one talks about in the United States. I mean, there are actors here in the private sector that are producing great products and they are extremely successful. So that continues to grow is important that American companies come and see for themselves, engage, and participate."
  • Embargoed: 9th November 2022 18:16
  • Keywords: Business Chamber of Commerce Cuba Sactions United States
  • Location: HAVANA, CUBA
  • City: HAVANA, CUBA
  • Country: Cuba
  • Topics: South America / Central America,Economic Events
  • Reuters ID: LVA001494026102022RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: A few dozen U.S. entrepreneurs braved tough U.S. sanctions and Cuba’s worst economic crisis in decades to attend a conference Wednesday (October 26) focusing on the new private sector and aimed at boosting flagging engagement between the Cold War-era foes.
    The Cuban Chamber of Commerce and Washington-based consultancy FocusCuba, which are hosting the gathering, said the three day event was the first such forum since at least 2018 when former U.S. President
    Donald Trump piled new sanctions on top of the decades-old trade embargo.
    Both the Cuban and the U.S. delegations criticized the sanctions - most of which are still in place - and called on U.S. President Joseph Biden to drop his Republican predecessors policies.
    Cuban Chamber of Commerce President Antonio Luis Carricarte called the gathering in the famous Hotel Nacional an "historic day," praising the persistence of representatives in attendance from both side of the Straits of Florida.
    During a brief thaw in relations under former President Barack Obama hundreds of U.S. businesses arrived to explore opportunities on the all but forbidden Communist-run island nation.
    Some, from cruise ship companies to Western Union and Starwood Hotels inked groundbreaking agreements, only to have new U.S. sanctions force them to renege. Others continue to do business.
    The government has licensed Cubans to operate nearly 5,500 private small and medium sized businesses over the last year, in a first since Fidel Castro's 1959 Revolution, opening new possibilities for partnerships with foreign investors.
    U.S. entrepreneurs in attendence represent a range of industries from food services to on-line shopping, digital money transfers, shipping, and finance.
    The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
    The Biden administration has loosened some restrictions on Cuba around remittances, tourism and migration. It has also expressed interest in supporting Cuba's private sector.
    (Production: Mario Fuentes, Anett Rios, Anna Portella, Liamar Ramos)
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